JUST because vaccines are rolling out to some officials do not mean that the general public can be lax about their own restrictions.
Thankfully, the prolonged necessity to use masks are made a bit lighter by designer Randy Ortiz and this year’s crop of beauty queens. Miss Universe Philippines Rabiya Mateo, Miss Universe Philippines First Runner Up Bella Ysmael, Miss Universe Philippines Third Runner Up Pauline Amelinckx, and Miss Universe Philippines Sorsogon Maria Isabela Galeria have all been seen wearing masks designed by Mr. Ortiz, in cooperation with Aerian Essentials — itself an initiative of a beauty queen.
Aerian Essentials came to be when Valerie Lim, Miss Universe Singapore 2011 and current National Director of the Miss Universe Singapore Organization, donated masks with the help of Miss Universe Philippines. The masks, according to Aerian’s website, are made with a patented nanosilver fabric (silver being known for its antimicrobial properties). The fabric was developed by scientist Dr. Liu Hongjun.
The Randy Ortiz x Aerian Face Masks are made of waterproof, and washable microfiber, with a pattern of Baroque foliage and swags set against a contrasting background, either off-white, black, blue, and fatigue green and maroon. Another design is that of a black and white rose. Each mask has a filter slot that holds the Aerian nCam Layer for effective protection against viruses and bacteria. The Aerian nCam Layer has been lab-tested and adheres to the standards of the International Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and the China National Accreditation Service for Conformity Assessment (CNAS). According to its website, “After rigorous testing, Aerian nCam has been certified and proven to help eliminate 99% of disease causing germs, viruses, including the H3N2 virus (a flu strain), and air pollutants from the air.”
The Randy Ortiz masks sell for P499, while the filters can be bought separately at P199 at aerianessentials.com but also through https://shopee.ph/aerianessentials. — JLG